Thekillerlama Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 Hi! Is the pain constant during cluster attacks? Or does it vary? Can it come in the form of "contractions"? And do any of you suffer from chronic migraines also? My 18 year old brother suffers from chronic migraine. The last week he has had attacks that are very different from his usual migraine and resemble cluster attacks. So, we need some help figuring out if he has developed CH also. Thanks for helping us out <3 Ida Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoxieGirl Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 Hi Ida, Sorry to hear about your brother. Wonderful of you to come here and help. We love supporters. I suffer with chronic migraines, they run in my family and I've had them near enough all my life. I've had clusters for the last 8 years, also chronic. Yes, I find my pain fluctuates during an attack. Thinking about it, my attacks probably (mostly) fall into two types. Fast and Sharp (like being hit in the eye with a baseball bat, full swing) and Slow and Painful. The F&S attacks come on that quickly, like I've literally been clobbered in the eye. I will often stagger backwards under the suddenness of it. These can last a few minutes to an hour, and the pain is ultra intense, and pretty constant, till it dies out nearly as fast as it came. The S&P attacks are a different beast altogether. I can have a headache for 1-2 hours before the attack, but not always. The pain builds slowly in comparison to the F&S attack, although even this is measured in seconds or minutes. These type probably hang around longer, going from 30 minutes to an hour, I rarely have attacks longer than an hour these days. But during that time, the pain can waver A LOT, even nearly fade completely. Sometimes I think the cluster will have died out, only to have it swing back up to full force. Also, I find I can direct and focus my thoughts some during these long attacks, and sometimes diminish the pain just by letting my mind think about something else. Doesn't always work, but can reduce it some. I guess the pain can be like slow flowing waves at time, and at other times, constant. These guys: https://ouchuk.org have some really good information to help diagnose if they are clusters or not. PH and SUNCT also look a lot like clusters sometimes. The only way to know for sure, is to go to a headache specialist, and then cross your fingers they actually know what clusters are. You'll find not a lot of us have much faith in doctors. There are a few amazing ones out there, but a lot of clueless ones too. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thekillerlama Posted May 4, 2015 Author Share Posted May 4, 2015 Thanks, MoxieGirl! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBaz Posted May 17, 2015 Share Posted May 17, 2015 Mine do tend to fluctuate in intensity during an attack. Climb, remit, climb higher, remit a little, peak then vanish almost completely within 45 mins to an hour. But I have had utterly unrelenting attacks that have lasted 3-4 hours. They are, quite simply, the worst thing I have ever endured. I'm sure many can relate. My neuro thinks I have migraine now too. Never rains etc etc. my cluster cycle is back, but seems ok for now. Well, as ok as it'll ever be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoxieGirl Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 HasBaz, Most people find (myself included) that busting is AWESOME for migraines as well as clusters. The year before I started busting, I had 60 migraines, the following year I had 3. To say busting restored my life is an understatement. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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